Four years ago this week, at his first conference as Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn appealed for “kinder politics”.

The fiery and ill-tempered exchanges in parliament this week proved again that the situation hasn’t improved– and has probably got worse.

On Wednesday, MPs called Boris Johnson to task for his use of language.

He was challenged over using of the word “surrender” to describe the law blocking a no-deal Brexit in October.

In the debate Paula Sheriff – the MP for Dewsbury and sister of Carlisle councillor Lee Sheriff – mentioned Jo Cox, the Labour MP for Batley and Spen who was murdered by a right-wing extremist days before the 2016 EU referendum.

She said: “We should not resort to using offensive, dangerous or inflammatory language for legislation that we do not like. Many of us are subject to death threats and abuse every single day.

“They often quote his words ‘Surrender Act’, ‘betrayal’, ‘traitor’ and I am sick of it. We must moderate our language, and it has to come from the prime minister first.”

There was anger at his response: “I’ve never heard such humbug in all my life.”

And he said that the best way to honour the memory of Jo Cox, a remain supporter - was “to get Brexit done”.

Yet Labour MP Jess Phillips told the debate of a threat she had received the same day. Boris Johnson had said he would rather “be dead in a ditch” than ask for another delay, and the threat quotes him - saying that remain supporting MPs would die in a ditch.

It is an example of what Catherine Anderson has been warning about. Ms Anderson, from Penrith. is chief executive of the Jo Cox Foundation, set up three years ago in memory of the murdered MP. She says comments like the prime minister’s had consequences.

“We have been concerned for quite some time about the worsening, more toxic kind of language being used in public life at the moment.

“You can disagree with your colleagues or neighbours, but at one end of the spectrum there are illegal acts.”

Abusive messages towards women often contain threats of sexual violence and she adds: “Girls and young woman do see this as a barrier to working in public life. We are really worried about that.

“Women from black and minority ethnic backgrounds get 35 per cent more abuse than white women.”

However Cockermouth county councillor Rebecca Hanson says it doesn’t put her off standing for Parliament.

She is Liberal Democrat candidate for Bootle in Liverpool at the next general election and says: “The level of discourse in the House of Commons was just appalling. But it stiffens my resolve.

“I was subjected to a level of abuse when Michael Gove was launching attacks on educational experts and I was an educational expert.

“The world needs strong people to stand up to threats.”